The following relates generally to a method of communicating using a wireless device, and more specifically to techniques to reduce power consumption in mobile device during low-power mode.
Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content such as voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, and so on. These systems may be multiple-access systems capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing the available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power). A wireless network, for example a wireless local area network (WLAN), such as a Wi-Fi (i.e., Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11) network may include access points (APs) that may communicate with one or more stations (STAs) or mobile devices. An AP may be coupled to a network, such as the Internet, and may enable a mobile device to communicate via the network (or communicate with other devices coupled to the access point). A wireless device may communicate with a network device bi-directionally. For example, in a WLAN, a STA may communicate with an associated AP via downlink (DL) and uplink (UL). The DL (or forward link) may refer to the communication link from the AP to the station, and the UL (or reverse link) may refer to the communication link from the station to the AP.
To conserve power, a mobile device (e.g., a smartphone) may enter a low-power mode when not in use (e.g., connected standby). During the low-power mode, the mobile device may not be able to communicate data to and receive data from an AP, except at regular intervals. In some wireless communication systems, a delivery traffic indication message (DTIM) may be used to inform the mobile device that is in low-power mode about the presence of buffered unicast or multicast data waiting to be transmitted to the mobile device. The AP may send the DTIM at predetermined times based on an agreed-upon time interval. The mobile device, in turn, may wake-up all, or a portion, of its components at those predetermined times to listen for the DTIM. If the traffic indication message indicates that the AP has buffered data for the mobile device, the mobile device may wake-up to receive the buffered data.